Children’s
Christian Education & Fellowship
We also offer Christian Education & Formation for adults and for youth.
Our formation as Christians continues throughout our entire lives. With that in mind, our children’s and youth offerings are intended to support the process of learning and becoming that God calls us to.
These programs below are designed specifically for young people, but their formation as Christians also requires an important intergenerational space: the liturgy of the Eucharist. Here, children take their place as full and significant members of the church. They participate in the Eucharist at their own developmental level (and interest!); we believe and know that important things are happening for them though we cannot see it. This is why all none of our education programs overlap with this central part of our life together, the Sunday Eucharist.
Some children like to help lead worship as acolytes; they can start as early as third grade and you can read more here.
For more on children receiving the Eucharist, please do see our FAQs.
Sunday School for 2026-27
Our Sunday School for children ages 3-12 includes both Catechesis of the Good Shepherd and Atrium Singers.
Sunday School for ages 3-12, 7th-8th grade, and adults happens at the same time: after our 9:30AM church service on the third and fourth Sundays of the month. Please see our flyer for the 2026-2027 Sunday School dates [coming soon].
Catechesis of the Good Shepherd
Our primary method of Christian formation for children age 3 through age 12 is called the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd. CGS was designed by a Biblical scholar and a student of Montessori, and refined over the years by careful work and study around the world. Catechesis helps us share the Good News with children, and teaches us to “read” the liturgy. The focus is to support an encounter between the child and God.
This is a Montessori-based approach to the religious formation of children, rooted in Scripture, liturgy, and respect for the child’s rich relationship with God. Central to Catechesis is the atrium, a space containing hand-made materials that focus the child’s attention on key scripture passages or liturgical moments.
Here at Our Redeemer, Catechesis meets after the 9:30 church service, as it is so important for the whole community to be worshiping and learning together in the Eucharist.
Catechesis is divided into three learning groups according to their developmental planes:
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Atrium 1 focuses on the most essential elements of our faith—the announcement of God’s love especially experienced through Jesus, the Good Shepherd, who died and is risen. Materials on the life of Jesus Christ and his teachings help to make the mystery of God concrete for the child. The heart of the catechesis for children under six revolves around the Parable of the Good Shepherd.
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Atrium II focuses on the image of the True Vine. “I am the vine, you are the branches, whoever remains in me, and I in him, will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing.” The proclamation responds to the deep need of these children to better know his or her relationship with God, family, friends, and the larger community.
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In Atrium 3, we focus on the history of salvation: the plan of God as a plan of communion, a plan which links all people together through God’s love. The emphasis is on our response to this unfolding generosity of God and recognition of the responsibilities that come with receiving God’s great gifts and seeing oneself as a collaborator with God.
Our dedicated and trained catechists and assistants are committed to helping children “fall in love with God.” This approach towards formation is one that Redeemer has cultivated over many years, and we continue to see the rewards through the deep faith that our youngest members share with us. We take the faith of children seriously, from the pre-literate to those on the verge of adulthood.
For more information on the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd, visit here. (If this sounds similar to Godly Play, the curriculum developed by Jerome Berryman, that’s because Berryman learned Catechesis of the Good Shepherd and then changed and further adapted it in a different direction. Some Godly Play stories are almost identical to the original Catechesis stories, which we use.)
Atrium Singers
Atrium Singers is an important part of our children’s Christian education and formation offerings for the Level 2 and 3 child. The Singers meet about twice a month after church, after children have had a little time to partake in Coffee Hour. They join Dr. Bernadette Colley, our Music Director, and Catechist Linda Kukolich, in the Music Room for twenty minutes of rehearsal. In Atrium Singers, children develop singing skills and learn unison and part songs from Christian traditions around the world. Learn more on the Music Page.
